Email exchange seen by Telegraph show how Goldman reprimanded junior banker,
as stage set for latest round in legal battle

Bosses at Goldman Sachs castigated a junior employee for questioning a trade the bank conducted on behalf of Libya’s sovereign wealth fund, warning him that it was not his business to get involved.

According to documents seen by The Telegraph, Youssef Kabbaj, the senior Goldman banker who led the bank’s relationship with the Libyan Investment Authority (LIA) during the Gaddafi years, told the employee: “This is very serious… Do not ever call [the] LIA without me… to discuss transactions”.

The banker, who had enjoyed a relationship with the Libyans, was sharply reprimanded after relaying LIA concerns about a foreign exchange trade, referring to it as “scary”. Mr Kabbaj, the head of Goldman’s North Africa office at the time, told the individual: “Do not speak with my clients without me on the line… Especially this one as you don’t know all the background.”

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A hearing will be held on Monday in London to determine terms for the upcoming trial, in which the LIA is seeking damages for the $1bn it lost on equity derivative transactions in 2008. When the stock market took a turn for the worse in the weeks after the trade, almost the entire value of the trades was lost.

The LIA, attempting to rebuild itself after Gaddafi’s fall in 2011, claims Goldman made more than $300m of profits from the deal.

The junior banker has since been identified as Jaber Jabbour, a Syrian who left Goldman several months after the LIA and the bank fell out. “Decisions around individual departures are predicated on a number of factors, which can include individual performance as well as anticipated business needs,” a person briefed on his departure said.

The email that sparked the criticism from Mr Kabbaj, and the FX trade it refers to, is not disputed in the London court case, but has been reviewed by America’s Securities and Exchange Commission as part of an investigation into Goldman’s ties with the LIA.

In the email, Mr Jabbour, seen as a talented banker at Goldman’s London office, relayed comments from Mohammed Layas, the head of the LIA at the time, saying he “didn’t open a casino”.

Following this, there appeared to be a marked shift in tone from Mr Kabbaj towards the banker. Mr Jabbour had previously mentioned his conversations with LIA officials to Mr Kabbaj without reprimand, according to other documents.

Mr Jabbour feared being dismissed by Goldman to the extent that he asked the Home Office to alter his visa so that he would not be deported if he were to leave the bank.

Mr Jabbour now advises governments in countries including Portugal, Italy, France and Spain, on understanding and restructuring complex trades they may have entered into with banks.